12-100
Any person who plats land as required by this Ordinance shall
conform to the general procedure described as follows:
1. Every application
for approval of any type of plat or plan for development shall be
subject to a determination of completeness by the Director of Public
Works.
2. No application
shall be deemed complete and accepted for processing unless it is
accompanied by all documents required by and prepared in accordance
with the requirements of this Ordinance. For a determination of completeness
to be issued, an application must include the following:
a. a completed
application form signed by the owner or the owner’s authorized
agent;
b. every
item, study and document required by this Ordinance for the type of
plat being submitted, or required for the plan for development;
c. a nonrefundable
application submittal fee, as specified in the fee schedule; and
d. evidence
that the requirements of all applicable regulations set forth in the
City’s Zoning Ordinance and other applicable ordinances of the
City are satisfied.
3. The Zoning
Administrator, Director of Public Works or the City Engineer may from
time-to-time identify additional requirements for a complete application
that are not contained herein but are consistent with the application
contents and standards set forth in this Ordinance.
4. A determination
of completeness shall not constitute a determination of compliance
with the substantive requirements of this Ordinance or other applicable
ordinances.
12-101 Not
later than the tenth (10th) business day after the date an application
is submitted, the Director of Public Works shall make a written determination
whether the application constitutes a complete application. This shall
include a determination that all information and documents required
by this Ordinance or other applicable ordinances have been submitted.
A determination that the application is incomplete shall be mailed
to the applicant within such time period by United States Certified
Mail or regular mail at the address listed on the application or by
personal delivery to the applicant or the applicant’s agent.
The determination shall specify the documents or other information
needed to complete the application and shall state that the application
will expire if the documents or other information is not submitted
within forty-five (45) days after the date the application was submitted.
12-102 An
application for approval of a plat or plan for development filed on
or after the effective date of this Ordinance shall be deemed complete
on the eleventh (11th) business day after the application has been
received, if the applicant has not otherwise been notified that the
application is incomplete. For purposes of this Section, the applicant
shall be deemed to have been notified if the City has mailed or delivered
a copy of the determination as provided in Section 12-101.
12-103 The
processing of an application by any City employee prior to the time
the application is determined to be complete shall not be binding
on the City as the official date of acceptance of the application
for filing. The date of filing shall be the date the Director of Public
Works determines that the application meets the requirements of this
Ordinance or other applicable ordinances governing the development,
such as the Zoning Ordinance, except for any requested variances.
12-104 The
incompleteness of an application shall be grounds for denial of the
application regardless of whether a determination of incompleteness
was mailed to the applicant.
12-105 An
application for approval of any type of plat or plan for development
shall expire on the forty-fifth (45th) day after the application is
submitted to the Director of Planning and Inspections for processing
if the applicant fails to provide documents or other information necessary
to meet the requirements of this Ordinance as specified in the completeness
determination provided to the applicant. Upon expiration, the application
will be returned to the applicant together with any accompanying documents.
Thereafter, a new application for approval of the plat or other plan
for development must be submitted.
12-106 The
detailed procedures for each phase of the platting process are addressed
in Parts III, IV, V, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI and XII of this Ordinance.
12-107 Upon
approval of a final plat, the Director of Planning and Inspections
shall immediately file such plat in the plat records of Tarrant County,
Texas.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
13-100
Proportionality Determination.
1. Prior to
a decision by the Planning and Zoning Commission on an application
or for approval of a plat or plan for development or prior to a decision
on any other application on which an exaction requirement is placed
as a condition of approval, including a planned development zoning
district or building permit, the City Engineer shall prepare a written
statement affirming that each exaction requirement to be imposed as
a condition of approval is roughly proportionate to the demand created
by the subdivision or development on the applicable public facilities
system of the City, taking into consideration the nature and extent
of the development proposed. In making this determination, the City
Engineer may consider:
a. categorical
findings and recommendations of the North Central Texas Council of
Governments in developing standard specifications for public infrastructure
improvements and stormwater management;
b. the proposed
and potential use of the land;
c. the timing
and sequence of development in relation to availability of adequate
levels of public facilities systems;
d. impact
fee studies; traffic impact studies (both geometric and capacity oriented);
drainage studies; fire protection, consumption and irrigation water
needs; solid or liquid waste collection and disposal; or other studies
or standards that measure the demand for services created by developments
and the impact on the City’s public facilities systems;
e. the level
of service and functionality of both on-site and off-site public infrastructure
improvements in serving the proposed subdivision or development;
f. the degree
to which public infrastructure improvements necessary to serve the
proposed subdivision are supplied by other developments;
g. the anticipated
participation by the City in the costs of necessary public infrastructure
improvements;
h. the degree
to which acceptable private infrastructure improvements to be constructed
and maintained by the applicant will offset the need for public infrastructure
improvements;
i. any reimbursements
for the costs of public infrastructure improvements for which the
proposed subdivision is eligible; and/or
j. any other
information relating to the impacts created by the proposed subdivision
or development on the City’s public facilities systems.
2. Based upon
the proportionality determination, the City Engineer shall affirm
that the exaction requirements of this Ordinance, or other ordinance
requiring the permit, as applied to the proposed subdivision or development,
do not impose costs on the applicant for public infrastructure improvements
that exceed those roughly proportionate to the impact of the proposed
subdivision or development.
3. The City
Engineer may require that the applicant, at its expense, submit reasonable
information or studies that may assist in making the proportionality
determination.
13-101 Rough Proportionality Determination.
1. The Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council shall consider the City Engineer’s report concerning the proportionality of the exaction requirements in making a decision on a plat application or plan for development. The Commission and the City Council may consider the City Engineer’s report in granting a variance to the requirements of this Ordinance pursuant to Article
7 hereof.
2. The City
official responsible for issuing a permit for which an exaction requirement
is imposed as a condition of approval shall consider the City Engineer’s
report concerning the proportionality of the exaction requirements
in making its decision as to whether to grant the permit, or to modify
or waive an exaction requirement.
13-102 Rough Proportionality Appeal.
1. An applicant
for approval of a plat or plan for development or other permit which
imposes an exaction requirement as a condition of approval may file
an appeal to contest any exaction requirement, other than impact fees,
imposed as a condition of approval or in which the failure to comply
is grounds for denying the plat or permit application[.]
2. The purpose
of a proportionality appeal is to assure that an exaction requirement
imposed on a proposed plat or plan for development as a condition
of approval does not result in a disproportionate cost burden on the
applicant, taking into consideration the nature and extent of the
demands created by the proposed subdivision or development on the
City’s public facilities systems.
13-103 Appeals Procedure.
1. An applicant
for approval of a plat or plan for development or an applicant seeking
approval for any other permit or zoning for which an exaction requirement
is imposed shall file a written appeal with the City Secretary within
ten (10) days of the date the Planning and Zoning Commission or the
city official responsible for issuing the permit takes action applying
the exaction requirement. This may include denial of the permit or
plat. The applicant shall submit seven (7) copies of the appeal.
2. A separate
appeal form shall be submitted for each exaction requirement for which
relief is sought. The City Secretary shall forward the appeal to the
City Council for consideration.
3. The applicant
may request postponement of consideration of the applicant’s
application by the City Council pending preparation of the study required
by Paragraph 6, in which case the applicant shall also waive any statutory
period for acting upon the application for the time necessary for
the City Council to decide the appeal.
4. No Facilities
Agreement may be executed by the City:
a. until
the time for appeal has expired unless the applicant agrees in writing
that the rough proportionality determination of the City Engineer
is reasonable and accurate and that no appeal will be filed; or
b. if an
appeal is filed, until the City Council has made a determination with
respect to the appeal.
5. The appeal
shall state the reasons that application of the exaction requirement
is not roughly proportional to the nature and extent of the impact
created by the proposed subdivision or development on the City’s
public facilities systems and does not reasonably benefit the proposed
subdivision or development.
6. The appellant
shall submit to the City Engineer seven (7) copies of a study in support
of the appeal that includes, with respect to each exaction requirement
appealed, the following information within thirty (30) days of the
date of appeal, unless a longer time is requested:
a. total
capacity of the City’s water, wastewater, roadway, drainage,
or park system, as applicable, to be utilized by the proposed subdivision
or development, employing standard measures of capacity and equivalency
tables relating the type of development proposed to the quantity of
system capacity to be consumed by the subdivision or development.
If the proposed subdivision is to be developed in phases, such information
also shall be provided for the entire development, including any phases
already developed;
b. total
capacity to be supplied to the City’s public facilities systems
for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage or parks, as applicable,
by the exaction requirement. This information shall include any capacity
supplied by prior exaction requirements imposed on the development;
c. comparison
of the capacity of the applicable City public facilities systems to
be consumed by the proposed subdivision or development with the capacity
to be supplied to such systems by the proposed exaction requirement.
In making this comparison, the impacts on the City’s public
facilities systems from the entire subdivision or development shall
be considered;
d. the amount
of any City participation in the costs of oversizing the public infrastructure
improvements to be constructed by the applicant in accordance with
the City’s requirements;
e. comparison
of the minimum size and capacity required by City standards for the
applicable public facilities systems to be utilized by the proposed
subdivision or development with the size and capacity to be supplied
by the proposed exaction requirement; and
f. any other
information that shows the alleged disproportionality between the
impacts created by the proposed development and the exaction requirement
imposed by the City.
7. The City
Engineer shall evaluate the appeal and supporting study and shall
make a recommendation to the City Council based upon the City Engineer’s
analysis of the information contained in the study and utilizing the
same factors considered by the Engineer in making the original proportionality
determination.
13-104 City Council Decision.
1. The City
Council shall decide the appeal within thirty (30) days of the date
of final submission of any evidence by the applicant. Upon receipt
of the final submission of evidence from the applicant, the City Secretary
shall schedule a time and date for the City Council to consider the
appeal and shall cause the applicant to be notified at the address
specified in the appeal form of the time, date and location at which
the City Council shall consider the appeal.
2. The applicant
shall be allotted time, not to exceed thirty (30) minutes, to present
testimony at the City Council meeting. The Council shall base its
decision on the criteria listed in Sections 13-100.1 and 13-103.6
and may:
a. deny
the appeal and impose the exaction requirement in accordance with
the City Engineer’s recommendation or the Planning and Zoning
Commission’s decision on the plat or other development application;
or
b. grant
the appeal, and waive in whole or in part an exaction requirement
to the extent necessary to achieve proportionality; or
c. grant
the appeal, and direct that the City participate in the costs of acquiring
land for or constructing the public infrastructure improvement.
3. In deciding
an appeal, the City Council shall determine whether application of
the exaction requirement is roughly proportional to the nature and
extent of the impact created by the proposed subdivision on the City’s
public facilities systems for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage,
or park facilities, as applicable, and reasonably benefits the subdivision.
In making such determination, the Council shall consider:
a. the evidence
submitted by the applicant;
b. the City
Engineer’s report and recommendation, considering in particular
the factors identified in Sections 13-106.1 [Section 13-103.1] and
13-109.6 [Section 13-103.6]; and
c. if the
property is located adjacent to a state or county road, any recommendations
from the county or state.
4. The City
Council may require the applicant or the City Engineer to submit additional
information that it deems relevant in making its decision.
5. The applicant
shall not be deemed to have prevailed in the event that the City Council
modifies the exaction requirement.
13-105 Action Following Decision of City Council.
1. If the
City Council finds in favor of the applicant and waives the exaction
requirement as a condition of plat approval, or modifies the exaction
requirement to the extent necessary to achieve rough proportionality,
the applicant shall resubmit the plat application to the Planning
and Zoning Commission or City official responsible for issuing the
permit within thirty (30) days of the date the City Council takes
action, with any modifications necessary to conform the plat with
the City Council’s decision. Failure to resubmit within the
thirty (30) day window shall be considered a withdrawal of the application.
2. If the
City Council finds in favor of an applicant for any other permit or
zoning and waives the exaction requirement as a condition of permit
or zoning approval, or modifies the exaction requirement to the extent
necessary to achieve rough proportionality, the applicant shall resubmit
the permit application to the responsible official within thirty (30)
days of the date the City Council takes action, with any modifications
necessary to conform the application with the City Council’s
decision. Failure to resubmit within the thirty (30) day window shall
be considered a withdrawal of the application.
3. If the
City Council denies the appeal and the applicant has executed a waiver
of the statutory period for acting upon a plat, the City shall place
the plat application on the agenda of the Planning and Zoning Commission
within thirty (30) days of the City Council’s decision.
4. If the
plat application is modified to increase the number of residential
dwelling units or the intensity of nonresidential uses, the City Public
Works Director or City Engineer may require a new study to validate
the relief granted by the City Council.
5. If the
plat application for which relief was granted is denied on other grounds,
a new appeal shall be required on any subsequent application.
13-106 through
13-111 (Reserved)
13-112
An applicant may appeal the decision of the City Council to
the county or district court of the county in which the development
is located within 30 days of the date that the City Council issues
its final decision. In the event that the applicant prevails in such
action, the applicant will be entitled to attorneys’ fees and
costs, including expert witness fees.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)